CNN reports that Verizon’s plans for VoLTE (voice over LTE) will be announced at the Mobile World Congress this month. The first smartphone to support pure LTE voice-and-data connections will supposedly be the LG Revolution, though it will use traditional CDMA voice when it ships; VoLTE will require an update to the phone, planned for 2012. There’s no word yet on which other phones will support VoLTE, but presumably most future LTE smartphones would have the ability.

Besides the simultaneous aspect of the voice-and-data connection, users of VoLTE will benefit from higher-quality voice calls, as less drastic compression will be needed to ferry the calls across the high-speed network. If you place or receive a call from someone using an older phone, the connection will automatically negotiate to use the standard, lower-quality voice codec.

We’re most curious to see if VoLTE voice plans will differ in price from traditional offerings. Considering the capability for higher-quality voice calls, Verizon may feel justified in charging a premium for the service.